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Thursday, December 24, 2015

A Little George Bailey

I have been dreading Christmas. WH and I have had a rough year and are counting the days until 2016 brings us a fresh start. Usually Christmas in my family means a big Christmas Eve party with all our friends. It means staying up late, opening presents, a leisurely meal on Christmas Day. This year, we'll have none of those things and I've been pretty much in the dumps about it.

But, as has become my new routine, I've reflected on the good in this. Which is what got me thinking about George Bailey. You know, George, the hero of It's a Wonderful Life, who got himself into some financial trouble while trying to protect his Uncle Billy. George gets in a fight with his family, runs away, and contemplates suicide -- until Clarence the Angel comes down from heaven to save him. To show him what the world would be like if he didn't exist. And miracle of miracles, George sees the light and is rewarded by his lifelong friends getting him out of the jam.

And so this year, I feel a little like George Bailey. You see, we've been in a jam. We've lost everything -- or so it has seemed at many points this year. But miracle of miracles, our lifelong friends have helped pull us out of a jam. The fundraisers that have kept us afloat are a lot like the money from Mr. Martini's jukebox...they were there just when we needed them the most. The support was there, just like Mr. Gower's charge accounts, from our friends, that reminded us that we aren't alone.

We didn't have one angel this year, we had hundreds. We didn't have to wonder what the world would be like if we didn't exist -- because our friends reminded us how important we are. We didn't get into quite the desperate tight spot that George Bailey had gotten into, because our friends never let us fall.

So this Christmas, even though I'm sad about what won't be, I'm still feeling like "the richest man in town" because of how we've been held up, supported, and given so much that you can't put a pricetag on.

"Remember, no man is a failure who has friends." --Clarence

If you would like to learn more about we're going through or help us as we battle this monster, please visit helpsasan.com.

For more information about environmental illness, mold, and mycotoxin poisoning, read here, here, and here, and watch video here.